An extension of the Common Sense Journalism monthly column by Doug Fisher, former broadcaster, newspaper reporter and wire service editor. From new media to old, much of journalism is just plain common sense."In matters of style, swim with the current; in matters of principle, stand like a rock." - Unknown (often improperly attributed to Thomas Jefferson)
"It is difficult to get a man to understand something when his salary depends upon his not understanding it." - Upton Sinclair
"Common sense is not so common" - Voltaire
"Common sense is instinct; enough of it is genius" - George Bernard Shaw

Thursday, December 01, 2011

A different way to look at new community newspapers study

A new study
from the Reynolds Institute and the National Newspaper Association is
being framed as "readers in areas served by community newspapers
continue to prefer the
community newspaper as their sources of local news and advertising."

From the release:

The survey, in its sixth year, shows consistent trends.

Readers prefer the printed copy to the online version, with 48 percent saying they never read the local news online.

They prefer to receive advertising through the newspaper (51%) instead
of on the Internet (11%). And only about a quarter of respondents said
they had found local news through a mobile device in the past 30 days.
Slightly more (38%) said they had received local shopping information by
mobile device.

They also have a strong preference for government accountability through
newspaper public notice, with 80 percent saying the government should
be required to publish notices in the newspaper.

Let me suggest a slightly different interpretation. If a quarter of
your market said it was using a device to access your product -- in this
case mobile -- would that be an "only" to you or a cause for management
to start thinking strategically in that area?

If more
than a third said they received local shopping information on a platform
-- mobile -- and the suggestion was that perhaps not all of them are
going to your site, would that be a cause for concern? Or are you
willing to write off more than a third of your audience - a segment
likely to grow? (Unfortunately, the release talks about a "trend," but
provides no trend data or a link to the time series raw data files. You
should also read the footnote to the study carefully because the
methodology has changed a bit.)

Yes, it's clear community papers continue to have an important
place in the media mix of consumers, but I don't think it's all unicorns
and rainbows as the release might suggest with this quote:

"The survey shows a majority of respondents believe that the newspaper
does a better job of providing background and depth on stories essential
to citizens,” Anfinson said. “Further, the newspaper is more useful to
them personally than any other news source. It not only highlights the
strong bond between local communities and their newspapers, but
demonstrates that people do value good journalism."

If I'm running a business, I'm not willing to give up a
quarter or a third of my market, yet I've sat in many a meeting in
recent years where community publishers defiantly act as though digital
is the enemy or, if they have digital assets, seem largely clueless
about them. Bad move.

0 Comments:

About Me

Yes, I do coaching and consulting. That is the only shameless commerce you'll get from me here. Go to the bottom of the blog for more details.
Who am I: A longtime print and broadcast reporter/editor/producer and then AP news editor who now professes journalism at the University of South Carolina. (But please note, nothing on this blog represents official university policy or sentiment. If it did, I'd be very concerned.)My point: That journalism is a great occupation, that most journalism is common sense and that our problems arise when we sometimes don't use it.What's covered: My interests center on editing and writing and on editors and the challenges they face in a changing environment. I'm convinced editors are not being trained enough to face these challenges, but that common sense rules the day. I'm heavily involved in Newsplex, the new-media newsroom at the University of South Carolina. But my interests are wide-ranging, so anything, from ethics to some aspects of Web design, is fair game.
Hope you find something here worthwhile.

Common Sense Journalism &nbspYes, I do seminars and consulting. Among those I have worked with are the SNPA Traveling Campus, S.C. Press Association, N.Y. Press Association, Georgia Press Association, Mississippi Press Association, Virginia Press Association, Landmark Community Newspapers, American Copy Editors Society, Society of Professional Journalists, Lancaster (S.C.) News, The (Rock Hill, S.C.) Herald, The (Sumter, S.C.) Item, the Internal Revenue Service and the Social Security Administration. Contact me for more information.